Reflection of a Man
by librophile
Summary: "Maybe he's 'Jake Skywalker,' he's not my Luke Skywalker." What if this were literally true?


**Reflection of a Man**

_"Maybe he's 'Jake Skywalker,' he's not my Luke Skywalker." – Mark Hamill_

Luke's been acting strange. So has Leia, really. Ever since Luke put his foot down about not allowing the Jedi to become subservient to the New Republic, even on the brink of war, things have been tense. Luke isn't answering his comm. Leia refuses to acknowledge the disagreement in the first place.

Han is going to get to the bottom of this.

He goes to the new Jedi home, sees his son (angry as ever, and he worries that Luke's concern about Ben's behavior has basis), and finally catches Luke in his office.

Luke offers him a glass – normal – then pours one for himself – unprecedented.

Han stares at him in dawning horror as he makes the connection. Luke's strange silence; Leia's refusal to mention anything about her brother.

He narrows his gaze and levels an accusation, voice hard. "You're not Luke."

Not-Luke looks at him and folds his arms, leaning back. "No," he agrees, "I'm not."

* * *

_ It went back to Wayland, when Karrde's men snatched a still-active cloning cylinder with the vague idea of profit, only to find to their horror that they recognized the man inside: Skywalker, the man who had saved them from the Empire and Mara from a Dark Jedi at the risk of his life and sanity._

_ They had contacted Leia immediately – and while horrified at the revelation, she had no intention of informing her brother. He'd want to train his double, of course. How could he not? But she'd seen the result of Luke's proximity to C'baoth's puppet. If this man was already corrupted…_

_ Leia claimed custody of the man, and gave him a home and access to basic Jedi texts on one condition: he never revealed his existence to Luke. Karrde's crew was sworn to secrecy so severe even Karrde was unaware of their discovery._

_ She named her ward Jake._

* * *

All of this Jake relates to Han, who finds himself listening in mounting dismay as he connects the dots – Leia's refusal to train under her brother for fear of revealing the secret she keeps, her silence after Luke's abrupt failure to answer comms…

"So where is he?" Han demands. "And why are you here?"

Jake flinches a bit at the latter, but explains.

* * *

_ Luke's refusal had never been accepted by Leia, who felt that it was the abruptness of her question that threw him. Given time and pressure, she felt, he would give in to her suggestion. The Jedi had been the symbol of peace in one age, after all, why not now? They needed him, and he'd never backed away from a need._

_ This thought had been forcibly derailed when she found him, several of his most trusted students, and his belongings gone entirely from his home._

_ Leia had already promised the Resistance that Luke's Jedi would fight for them, sure of her own conclusions. His absence changed things, and she lacked the time to hunt him down and bring him back… if she could. His research had unveiled whole undiscovered sectors even within the Known Galaxy._

_ She had promised the Resistance a Jedi, and a Jedi they would have._

_ There was, after all, one other Skywalker._

* * *

Han stares at the double in disbelief, and the other looks back at him with an expression of weary resignation.

"So what," he sputters, "she dragged you in to hold his place?"

Jake chuckles, sipping his drink, then sobers again in a way that gives Han the shivers. His behavior is all the Kid, except for all the ways it's not. "No," he replies. "General Organa brought me here to _be_ Luke."

* * *

_ Though held from approaching his counterpart by the conditions of their agreement, Jake was very interested in his progenitor – and the holonet was not withheld from him, only using it for communication in a way that would lead to his discovery._

_ He learned a lot about Luke that way._

_ Of course, in more subtle ways his genetics shone through. He was the barest fraction of an inch taller than his predecessor; he appreciated a drink while Luke had a decided distaste for alcohol; his right arm was lost in a tussel with a gargantuan beast he was unsure how to identify, while Luke's was lost at the hands of his father._

_ It was after the latter incident that Jake decided their similarities were too close for comfort._

_ Leia visited regularly every few months. When she had approached him on her final visit, requesting that he take her brother's place until he was found, at which point Leia would introduce them herself… he'd jumped on it without a second thought._

* * *

Han's eyes are no longer focusing within the room, and Jake watches him warily. On one hand, Han has shown acceptance – though wary – of the Old Republic troopers who resurface. On the other, he holds an instinctive dislike for clones… which may include dopplegangers of his missing best friend who have been placed by his wife's machinations.

"You said Leia told you to stay here until he's found," Han finally says.

Jake nods.

Han's jaw tightens and he speaks. "Has she done anything to find him?"

Jake replies, "She said that at the first break in the war, she'd send someone."

Han growls, confirming Jake's darker suspicions: good intentions or not, it's unlikely that there will be a break in the war until they either win or are all dead. It could be decades.

"Well, she's sending someone," Han declares determinedly. "Me. If my brother-in-law is gone somewhere, I'm probably the best chance of finding him."

Jake feels his eyes widen as he leans back in his seat. "What about the war?"

"Let her lead it," Han replies flatly. "I've always been looked at by the others as a poor husband anyway, prone to disappearing even after all these years. I'd hate to disappoint them."

The double leans across Luke's desk. "What about Ben?"

For the first time Han graces him with one of the crooked smiles he's seen in the holos. "We sent him here in hopes Luke could help him with his temper, but I always wondered if Luke had the backbone to stand up to one of Ben's tantrums. Not that he can't," he dismisses with a wave, "but after Vader – even before Vader – well, I wondered if Luke would overlook bad behavior in hopes that he'd get better." He frowns. "And he wasn't getting better, even at home."

Jake frowns. "You'd leave him here?"

The look the erstwhile smuggler gives him is tinged with sorrow and a touch of pain. "I couldn't do anything for him," he replied simply. "Leia might be able to, but she won't even say Vader's name, let alone debunk Ben's crazy fixation on him. Luke's gone." He shrugs, then adds, his words hitting Jake like a stun bolt, "Leia trusted you enough to put you in charge of the new Jedi on your own, and you're a Skywalker, too. Least I can do is give you the same chance."

* * *

Han leaves after a heated confrontation with his wife that ends with her in tears and him blank faced and griefstricken. They stay in touch by comm… gradually lessening as the years go by. He never knows what Leia tells Ben about his disappearance, though he does say goodbye to his son in person. He has leads; he'll find Luke eventually.

He finds Kylo Ren first.

* * *

"You're Luke Skywalker!"

Jake Skywalker looks Rey in the eye – the blind hero worship and youthful enthusiasm – and says grimly, "I used to be."


End file.
